English version- Magyar lejjebb található

My first race as an elite cross triathlete was a blast!

Not only because I had a decent race against some great pro athletes but I got to share the experience with my sister who flew in from Qatar.
I picked her up in Minnesota and our journey begin. We drove up to the Upper Peninsula Michigan to visit my in-laws and recoup from the trip- even though they are located only half-way to Toronto.

In Canada we stayed in a cool little house about a 20 minute drive to the race venue.

There was something to do every day. The sport of triathlon leaves you with not much time to spare even the days leading up to an event.

We scouted the trails on foot and on wheels and searched for some water to swim in. The latter never happened. I did not get a chance to swim for an entire week before the race.

Perhaps not the best idea- we visited Niagara Falls the day before the event. While it was a relatively short, one hour drive from our house, it was still an energy-sapping hot day that I probably should have spent with my feet up, laying on the bed while mentally preparing for the race.

The trails were twisty- sort of what we have here in North Dakota- except that it also included some hills and even more roots and rocks- features that we lack up here in North Dakota.
I always knew that the best (technical) training I get is usually when I race. Not exactly what you would define as ideal but this is how it is.

On race day, for the first time ever, I rode my bike for more than just a few minutes. I joined fellow pro triathlete Chris Ganter for the short loop of the bike course. I don't think for a minute that the half hour we spent riding would have negatively affected my race. On the contrary. The easy riding helped me warm up for the race not only physically but mentally as well.

The pro men started just one minute ahead of the female pro field and another one minute ahead of the amateur field. Race favorite and local pro Karsten Madsen took the lead right after the gun and we didn't see him again until the finish line.
I hang onto the feet of Chris' and another fellow pro and stayed with them for the entire swim. I figured that Chris is a good person to stay with as he's really strong on the bike who can pull me once out riding. The plan worked until we left the water. Then he gapped me in transition and I never saw him again. Once I passed some of the amateur men and female pros back who swam like a fish I found myself in no man's land again. Other pros were a little up ahead while some already behind me. Not a good place to be when you want to go fast as it's easy to forget about the pace for a moment and it can cost seconds or even minutes at the end.

Finished the bike course with still some juice left in the tank. Or just enough to finish the run course relatively strong. I pushed from the beginning but the problem was again that I did not see anyone ahead of me. Once back to Kelso Quarry we had to run a 2k long loop around the lake. There, I could finally see some of my competition up ahead but unfortunately I ran out of real estate and finished in a respectable 6th place. 

Before and during the race I used HotShot, the new miracle elixir in hopes to prevent the almost-inevitable muscle cramps I used to get towards the end of every triathlon. I am happy to say that the dreaded cramps could not catch me this time. More trials required for final conclusion. XTERRA USA's and World's will serve as excellent testing grounds.

What did I learn from this race?

1. I need to swim faster- I need to swim more.
2. Gotta practice transitions.
3. Loving this sport and it's worth every drop of sweat.

MAGYAR változat

Nem csak azert volt sikeres ez a kis kirándulás Kanadába mert a verseny jól sikerült, hanem azért is mert a húgommal tudtam eltölteni egy pár napot, aki Qatarból repült át az Óperencián.

Minnesotaban kaptam fel a reptéren majd onnan Michigan állam északi csücskét lőttük be célul, ahol rokonlátogatásról volt szó egy kis túrázással egybekötve. Igaz, csak félúton volt, jól esett megpihenni egy pár napra.

Kanadában, vagyis Toronto várostól nyugatra egy kis  házban volt a szállásunk Airbnb-n keresztül. 

A napokat inkább edzésekkel és pályabejárassal töltöttük el. Futva és nyeregben (két keréken és nem négy lábon) is oda-vissza bejártam az ösvényeket, igy arra nem lehetett panasz. 

A verseny előtti napon, talán nem a legjobbkor, meglátogattuk a Niagara vizesést is. Ugyan a látvánnyal nem volt panasz és csak egy órára volt a szálástől, lehet, hogy mégiscsak jobb lett volna inkább otthon pihenni..

Első volt a számomra, hogy egy hosszabb bemelegitést csináltam a verseny reggelén. Chris Ganter haverommal tekertük le a pálya kisebb, kb 7km-es körét. Elfáradni nem tudtam ettől és szerintem még mentálisan is jobban rá tudtam hangolódni és fellazulni a versenyre.

A pro férfi rajt egy perccel előzte meg a pro női rajtot, akik ugyancsak 1 perccel előnnyel indultak neki az amatőr férfiak előtt. Nem egész féltávnál már utól is ért a leggyorsabb nő majd sorban jöttek a többi halak is. Chris Ganter és egy másik pro lábvizén úsztam végig és ez jó jel is volt a tovabbiakra nézve mert Chris az egyik legerősebb bringás a mezőnyben. Sajnos a depóban sikerült hátrányt összeszedni és akkor láttam utóljara Christ.
A 21km-es rövidke mtb pályát úgy nyomtam, ahogy csak tudtam, de így se sikerült megközelíteni a helyi menőket, akik valószinűleg csukott szemmel
is le tudják tekerni a pályát. Azután, hogy visszaelőztem a halacskákat a bringa pálya elején, már senkit sem láttam magam előtt. A 1okm-es futást bizalommal kezdtem meg, de tudtam, hogy 1-2 perces hátrányban vagyok a pénzes helyhez képest. Futottam, ahogy csak tudtam, de nem sikerült senkire se ráérni. Ahogy visszaérkeztem a Kelso Quarry-ba megláttam verseny társaimat, de azok még mindig 1.5 perccel voltak előttem. Végül is a 2km-es tó körül sikerült fél percet hozni az előttem futón, de megelőzni már nem tudtam. 6. helyen értem be, ami nem egy rossz hely. Ennél többet az adott napon nem tudtam volna kihozni magamból, hacsak nem ragadok rá valakinek a kerekére a bringa kezdetétől.

Mit tanultam a versenyből:

1. Sokkal többet kell úsznom.
2. Gyakorolni kell a depózást.
3. Imádom ezt a sportot és ez minden izzadságcseppet megér.

Results:

Now, while I am happy with the card and the fact that I can compete with the best of the off-road circuit it also makes me nervous.
For years I was watching, admiring, trying to copy those professional athletes I will be lining up against the next time I race. Some of them I know better than others but I am definitely honored to have finally become part of this "club".
While there's the added pressure as well to bring results on a consistent basis, I like challenges so hey, bring it on!

My next race will be in Canada, this time as one of the elite athletes on the field! Exciting!

English version- Magyar lejjebb talalható

The 2016 edition of the Xterra Oak Mountain/Southeast Championships will go in the record books where I finally earned my right to punch my elite license with USAT.

However, prior to the race the signs were nowhere near that bright. The injury-season started last year for me while still back in New Zealand. I must have pushed my body too much and ended up with a torn calf muscle that took months to heal. In addition I have been having issues with my patella (tracking problems).. Took 4 months off of training between August, 2015 and December but it seems as if it did nothing. Just about a month ago, during an easy jog my calf again flared up and forced me to take a few days/week off from running. Swimming hasn't been the sport where I would've focused my attention, either. I felt I was in a pretty good shape towards the end of our stay in New Zealand thanks to former Xterra pro Craig Evans who directed my swimming workouts while down under. However, with all the traveling and distractions in the past few months I would average about 1-2 swims a week.

Now you'd think that I've had all the time to invest into my bike training but you couldn't be any farther from the truth. I have had some good rides but nothing like the treks I did while in New Zealand last year.
With all this in mind I figured my trip to Alabama I would accomplish two things. 1. Catching up with my old college mate Sergio and get an idea about where am I at.

I pre-rode the entire course once on Thursday and ran the loop around the lake once again on Friday with easy swims in the lake on both days. As far as course reckon goes I was satisfied with these. Race morning surprised us again with some rain and wet trails but this was nothing new as I raced in similar conditions in 2014 when I took the overall amateur title.

Once the gun went off I quickly found some clean water on the right side of the field so stay out of trouble. My plan was to cruise the swim and exit the water after the 1500m swim with still gas in the tank. The plan seemed to work too good as I ended up coming out of the water nearly 3 minutes behind the rest of the field so I had some room to make up on the bike. The beginning of the bike course was wet and slippery but I managed to keep rubber side down and only got stuck behind slower riders for a few minutes in total. Once the climbing started I had no one in sight and focused only on putting out as much power as possible while staying relaxed for the run to come. I again walked the dreaded blood rock section and hammered the remaining 8 miles like its a mtb race only. Ended up reeling in all the amateur athletes by the time I got off the bike feeling pretty good with 6 miles of running still ahead. The first lap of the run was controlled but even with all the water/Gatorade and gels I ingested during the race I started to cramp in my left hammies that slowed me down quite a bit. I literally walked over the logs and other obstacles with legs extended to prevent a devastating cramp that I had so many times in races like Las Vegas and Hawai'i. With less than half a mile to go I spotted two more athletes, professionals, and surged to pass them. I nearly cramped up but fought it off somehow to finish with my best overall result recorded during my Xterra racing carrier.

7th overall athlete (including the pros) and 1st amateur athlete to cross the finish line means that I've submitted my application for my elite triathlon license so I can compete with the "big boys" from here on.

In retrospect I would've done nothing differently and am extremely happy with the results!

The main goal for the rest of the season is to remain (or become?) injury-free and gain some triathlon-specific strength indispensable in this type of competitions. 

MAGYAR változat

A 2014-es, sikeres, ev utan nagyon vartam, hogy az XTERRA Oak Mountain versenyen vehessek reszt ujbol. Az idei valtozasoknak koszonhetoen az alabamai verseny volt az elso amerikai allomasa a pan-american bajnoksagnak. Ebben a versenysorozatban szerettem volna a 2016-os evet a dobogo legmagasabb fokan zarni. Lehet, hogy ez mar nem fog teljesulni. Az ok, amiert nem nyerhetem meg a versenysorozatot, viszont teljesiti egy masik celomat. Amiota elkezdtem triatlonozni szerettem volna az elit divizioban, a profikkal versenyezni es az alabamai eredmenyemnek koszonhetoen ez valoszinuleg sikerult is.

Sajnos az elokeszuletek nem mentek olyan siman. Meg tavaly, a 2015-os uj-zelandi tartozkodasunk alatt sikerult elszakitani a vadlimban az izmot es egy jo 4 honapos kihagyas sem segitett rajta. Futas kozben mind a mai napig faj az izom es emiatt meg most is csak konnyu futasokat tudok vegezni, rovideket es mindezt fuvon. Az uj-zelandi uszo formamat mar regen elvesztettem a sok utazas es strukturalatlan edzesek miatt. Emiatt a bringa volt az, amiben remenykedtem, hogy megadja a lehetoseget egy esetleges jo eredmenyre.

Szerencsere a verseny az ellenkezoje volt az elojeleknek. Ugyan az uszas elmaradt a varakozasoktol es majd 3 perccel a leggyorsabb uszo mogott fejeztem be az 1500m-es uszast, sikerult legalabb tulelni es nem nagyon zihalva kezdeni a mountain bike reszet a triatlonnak. A 30km-es bringan a terv az volt, hogy ugy tekintsek erre, mintha a verseny celja az a bringa vegen lenne, tehat mindent ki akartam hozni magambol, nem tartalekolva semmit sem. Majd 4 perccel sikerult gyorsabban tekernem, mint 2 evvel ezelott es ez eleg volt arra, hogy behozzam a 3 perces lemaradasomat es a futast az elso helyen kezdjem csak profikkal elottem. A futas elso kore kontrollalt iramban tortent de ez sem tudta megakadalyozni, hogy elkezdjem a combhajlitom gorcsolni a technikas terepen. 800m-rel a cel elott meglattam meg ket profi versenyzot, akikre miutan rafutottam nagy iram kulonbseggel eloztem meg, hogy ne legyen lehetoseguk tartani a lepest velem. Nem sokra ra a combhajlitom kezdte megadni magat, de valahogy sikerult kiharcolni azt, hogy ne alljon teljesen be es ne kelljen negykezlab kuszni a celszalagon at.

Az eredmennyel teljesen elegedett vagyok, pedig ez nem gyakran tortenik meg velem. Az elsojelek pedig biztatoak es ha sikerulne a seruleseket elkerulni a szezon hatralevo reszeben (ami lenyegeben csak most kezdodott meg), akkor meg sok jo eredmenyre szamithatok.

A USAT Elite triathlon licenszre jelentkeztem es ha minden jol megy akkor a legkozelebbi, kanadai, versenyemen mar a profikkal egyutt fogok versenyezni.

Results/Eredmenyek:

2016 Around the Mountain Cycle Challenge. New Plymouth, Taranaki, New Zealand. 148km road bike race.
Is it that hard to have just ONE. ONE good race?
Started with the fast group. Dropped my chain not even 2k into the ride. As a result, I lost contact with them and it was impossible to ride myself back to the fast moving peloton. After 10k solo riding I sat up and waited for the second group that started 3 minutes after us. However, there was just no cohesion in there. I did most of the work, pushing hard to keep the pace rich from 40k to 95k. Posted my fastest 40k time en route (59 minutes). Then I realized that I can't work alone so sat back and rode with the group. Then.. at the 100k mark... Bang! A dude crossed in front of me as I was just putting my water bottle back and I crashed hard. Broke my rear shifter/brake lever so I only had two gears to work with from that point on. My elbow and knee was bleeding and my ass was already in pain from the saddle I chose for this ride (Specialized Power). Pedaled by myself until a smaller group caught up to me but I couldn't hang on, lost contact for a second and it was enough to gap me. I had to ride by myself again for the last 20k. My knee pain flared up again like I haven't had enough to worry about..
Lessons learned:
1. A road cycling race is NOT an honest reflection of your cycling ability (skills, strength etc). People in the back can pedal backwards and still go at my pace when I'm up front crunching out 350+ watts.. A 60yr old lady was in the group for god's sake..
Stick with mountain biking. When you go down it's most likely your fault..
2. Do not change a saddle on race day when you have even the tiniest doubt that it'll be comfortable.
3. Take more water with you! I drank only 1.4 liters in 4.5 hrs. Second event in a row where the organizers here in New Zealand don't think riders might need water aid stations along the route.. What's up with that? I organized local 10k and half marathons and we had water stations every 5k along the course. People demand them and it's just normal to have a few along the course..
4. Don't think that cycling is all about getting in them miles. I have neglected strength training lately therefore my knee pain returned (IMO).
Basically, I paid $95 to walk away with cuts and bruises, damaged bike, ego. On the other hand I have learned a lot from this "race".

Since the beginning of August I have been on a much different schedule than before. A running related injury caused a tsunami of other problems that I have found difficult to get over. Its partially (probably entirely) my fault. For starters I have to admit that triathlon is far from just swim, bike and run workouts. The problem is that that's how I treated it for so long. Second, it seems like that I haven't learned much after nearly two decades spent with competitive running. Lastly, media and social networking, while great, must be seperated from training.
I had got in a solid few months of training by August, through the New Zealand winter, when a seemingly easy long run made me rewrite all plans I had for the remainder of the 2015 season.
On Saturday I did a fast(er) 10k run and on Sunday, during a 19k easy run (originally scheduled) I couldn't help myself and was beating Strava CR's on mainly uphill sections. Towards the end of the run I started to feel my calf and the pain persisted for days. Not even a week later my left knee started to hurt during an easy training ride. Then again I pulled my left adductor muscle when racing the dog uphill.. Few days later, as I was favorizing my right leg my right calf (achilles) started to hurt. By then I was doing very easy jogs and rides days apart from each other. Then, out of a blue (after all of this really not) when I was focusing on  minor signs of right achilles pain my left achilles flared up. It was so intense that for a while I thought that one more step and it would tear. That was mid-September, just before I flew back to Hungary for two weeks. Then I took a long break from running and cycling (22 and 23 days to be precise). First run was just a week ago again when I felt a very minor calf pain only. While it was minor I thought I would wait a few days before trying to run again. Well, this last try ended up miserably and walked home again.
I just cycled a little over an hour pain-free today, however, I am far from being convinced that all is well with my left knee. The x-ray in September didn't show anything and for the time being I am holding back on getting an MRI on my knee.
I started strength training at home and if anything this should make a huge difference. And time, of course.
The bright side is that I have been able to focus on my swimming and I am confident that I am swimming as fast as ever. This is the great thing about triathlon that while a person is out due to an injury its very likely that he/she can still perform other sports.
While it saddens me that I am unable to compete in New Zealand right now I am glad that it all surfaced right now, when Xterra racing was put on a temporary hold anyways. I can only hope that I learn from this sequence of mistakes and that 2016 and the following years will be (finally) injury-free and successful.